Hannity Wishes Tucker a ‘Great Rest of Vacation,’ Fox Clarifies Carlson Will Be On Air This Week

During the handoff between their primetime Fox News programs, Sean Hannity congratulated Tucker Carlson for standing up to the “mob” before dropping some major news. Major news that wasn’t.

According to what Hannity first declared, Carlson was going to be taking a vacation as his program is roiled in a firestorm of controversy over unearthed misogynistic and racist remarks he made during appearances on shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge’s radio program between 2006 and 2011.

“I have to give you a compliment,” Hannity said Tuesday night. “Tucker was going to be off this week. It’s a busy news week and he’s not going to take the mob’s crap. And he came into work to — to stand up to this. And I want the great viewers of this channel to know that.”

After Tucker thanked Hannity, Hannity claimed that he’s an “expert at this” because leftists have been “trying to kill” him for the past 23 years, adding that it “never stops.”

“Anyway, always great to see you. Have a great rest of vacation that you were supposed to have,” Hannity said as Carlson went off air.

A Fox News spokesperson, however, confirmed to Contemptor that Carlson is not going on vacation and will be on air the rest of the week. Considering that Bill O’Reilly, the star who previously occupied the 8 PM slot, took a vacation during an advertiser boycott over his multiple sexual harassment settlements and never returned to the air, it is understandable that the network would be extremely sensitive and want to clear the record right away regarding any breaks taken by troubled on-air talent.

Justin Baragona is the founder and publisher of Contemptor. He was previously the Cable News Correspondent for Mediaite and prior to starting Contemptor, he worked on the editorial staff of PoliticusUSA. During that time, he had his work quoted by USA Today and BBC News, among others. Justin began his published career as a political writer for 411Mania. He resides in St. Louis, MO with his wife and pets.